{"id":1060,"date":"2015-03-13T20:58:11","date_gmt":"2015-03-13T19:58:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/adc\/?p=1060"},"modified":"2015-12-18T14:19:32","modified_gmt":"2015-12-18T13:19:32","slug":"more-than-numbers-reflexivity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/adc\/2015\/03\/13\/more-than-numbers-reflexivity\/","title":{"rendered":"More than numbers: Reflexivity"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"heisenberg_uncertainty_principle_necklace\"<\/a>What effect do you as a researcher have on your work? Perhaps the nice, neat, medical school answer is \u2018we try to minimise how we influence research\u2019. Certainly, quantitative techniques such as randomisation, blinding and objective measurements of results aim to reduce the potential for the researcher to influence the results of a study. However, in all research we have considerable influence on the results we get. Within qualitative research this concept is even more challenging, as the researcher is both a tool used to carry out the research, and one used to measure the result.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

As a qualitative researcher, consider how you may influence the results of your\u00a0research:<\/p>\n

You might\u00a0influence your\u00a0research by the way you\u00a0analyse questions. For example, you may have preconceived expectations of what my participants will say and thus see these responses more easily in the work, interpreting what participants say according to your\u00a0own beliefs \u2013 if a teenager says \u2018I feel suicidal\u2019 I might just assume they mean \u2018My life is so awful and I feel so sad that I am planning to kill myself\u2019 because that it what your\u00a0medical training tells you\u00a0about patients expressing\u00a0suicidal ideation. However they mean \u2018I am so tired and overwhelmed with my exams\/friends\/family\/job that I would not mind if I got hit by a bus and died tomorrow because it would mean I could just have a rest\u2019. Your\u00a0interpretation of the initial \u2018I feel suicidal\u2019 could result in drawing conclusions that are not what the participant actually meant.<\/p>\n

And such it is particularly important in\u00a0qualitative research to think about all of these things and to consider ways to reduce your impact \u2013 by discussing your research design with colleagues, by carefully considering the phrasing of questions and by asking your participants for clarification of any ambiguous statements – \u2018what exactly do you mean by that?\u2019. Furthermore, it is also important to be honest about the potential influences you have had on your research (as well as the methods you chose to use to reduce them) and to declare these honestly within your reports. This allows the audience reading your work to judge whether they trust and believe what your findings and conclusions. This ability to reflect honestly on your own influences upon the research is what is meant by the term \u2018reflexivity\u2019.<\/p>\n

– Jess Morgan<\/p>\n

(Personal reflexive note \u2013 I am a trainee paediatrician, a multi-methods doctoral research student, an avid knitter and a lover of cake \u2013 feel free to draw any conclusions you like!)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What effect do you as a researcher have on your work? Perhaps the nice, neat, medical school answer is \u2018we try to minimise how we influence research\u2019. Certainly, quantitative techniques such as randomisation, blinding and objective measurements of results aim to reduce the potential for the researcher to influence the results of a study. However, […]<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9800],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1060","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-qualitative"],"yoast_head":"\nMore than numbers: Reflexivity - ADC Online Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/adc\/2015\/03\/13\/more-than-numbers-reflexivity\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"More than numbers: Reflexivity - ADC Online Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What effect do you as a researcher have on your work? 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